Something I wrote to try and wrap up the series after it was left hanging at the end of the Dark Moon series. I'm probably setting the rating too high, the initial scene isn't what it seems like. And it really doesn't have an ending

I wrote this little scene after seeing the final episode from the original airing of the Dark Moon series. As it left us hanging, with the knowledge of who Reeny was, but without wrapping up any of the loose threads, I guess I was trying to continue the series in my head.

I didn't know anything about the 3000 year difference between Reeny's time and ours, and assumed that the vision Darian was seeing was a real warning, and not a test sent to him by his former self. So some of these ideas didn't turn out to be true. On the other hand, Serena's choice of words when talking about Darien and their dream are so close to "Promises Fulfilled" that I was amazed at how close I was, when I finally got to see that episode.

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"Revelation"

by Richard Ryley

Serena arched her back, humming in her bliss, as Darian's hands caressed her body. It felt so good, so right, to finally feel the warmth of his bare flesh, next to hers. She felt as if she were floating, and the world seemed blurred, indistinct. But she was right where she wanted to be.

She couldn't see the rest of Darian clearly, but she could see his face. She gazed into the eyes that she'd studied so many times before. Lately, he had seemed cold, distant, trying to push her away, but the few times he had looked her in the eye, she could still see the feelings there. Now she KNEW the love was there, she could feel it, throbbing throughout her body.

"Serena," he breathed. "Are you sure?"

"Oh, Darian, I've never been so sure of anything in my life. We were always meant to be together." She pulled him closer, begging him to show her what she wanted to know. Everything still looked hazy, like they were drifting in a cloud, but Serena knew her heart. She didn't know exactly what it was she was asking for, but she knew that she wanted it terribly.

Her body reacted to his need, as her own desire built, and she knew that she was driving him crazy, too. He caressed her gently, making her body ache, touching her in all the ways she'd imagined him touching her. Driven by an instinct that seemed beyond her control, she felt a warmth growing at her hips, and spread her legs apart. There was a sensation down there. It was vague, indistinct, but it drove her right over the edge.

Serena sat bolt upright in bed as the waves of pleasure flooded her body, making her shudder. For a moment, the sudden, stark reality made her experience seem all the more intense. But then, as the climax ended, and she began to tremble from the afterglow, she realized that she was all alone.

It had been a dream.

"NOOOOO!!!!!" Serena wailed, her heart breaking, as she realized that the impossible dream was just that, impossible. With a cry of despair, she fell back onto her side, wrapping her arms around her pillow. She curled up into a fetal position, sobbing.

Luna sat up, wakened by Serena's cry. "Serena? Are you all right?"

The cat stood up on the bed, walking over to look at Serena more carefully. Serena just kept herself curled up in a ball, her face hidden, quietly sobbing. The cat put a paw softly against her back. "What's wrong? Did you have a bad dream?"

When there was no reply after a few moments, Luna touched her again. "Serena. What is it?" Worried, the cat moved around to try and get a better look at her. Serena just turned her head away, not wanting Luna to look at her.

"Go away." She muttered.

"Serena!" Luna seemed startled. She blinked, then turned to walk away. She paused, looked back at Serena, then turned back and jumped off the bed. Serena hugged her pillow tighter, and began to cry all the harder, her tears unstoppable.

Luna gave her a few moments, wandering into the bathroom to take care of cat business. Then she returned. She looked up as the door opened, and Serena's mother stuck her head in. "Time to get up, Serena!" She said, then closed the door again as she continued down the hall to Sammy's room.

Luna jumped up on the bed. "You heard her. Time to get up Serena. It's a nice day." Serena had stopped crying, although she still sniffled. But she had not moved from the moment Luna left her. All of a sudden, the cat started to get worried.

She grabbed Serena's shoulder and tried to turn her over. Serena didn't move. She didn't even flinch. "Serena! Come on, you'll be late for school!" She paused a moment. "Come on, Serena, you're scaring me!"

At that moment, Serena's mom walked back in, and Luna fell silent. Her mom walked over and shook Serena. "Come on, dear, no more snoozing. You've got to get up." Her voice was soothing, good-natured. She knew it would take a little more prying to get Serena up, as it did every morning.

"Leave me alone," Serena said dejectedly.

Serena's mom paused. "Serena, now you get up, right now." She turned Serena over, grabbing her gently, but firmly by the shoulder and rolling her over. "It's time to go to school."

Serena's mother had seen her daughter sleepy, lazy, worn out after late nights (she thought) studying with her friends, scared of upcoming tests, and just plain unwilling to wake up. But she had never before seen the look that she now saw on Serena's face. She audibly gasped.

"What's the use?" Serena mumbled. "What's the use of anything? I just don't... care anymore..." She rolled back over again, shutting out the world.

"Serena! SERENA!" The black-haired woman shook her daughter, roughly this time, but Serena refused to respond. Putting a hand to her mouth, she backed away from the bed. Then, as if deciding on a course of action, she turned and left the room.

"SERENA!" Luna scolded. "What is WRONG with you? Do you want to frighten your poor mother?"

There was a long silence. Luna felt a shudder run down her spine. Something was dreadfully wrong. She barely heard the words, as Serena muttered, "What's the use of living..."

Luna backed away, her mouth agape. As she did, she heard Sammy come into the room behind her. "You're in trouble, sis! Mom's callin' the funny farm! They're gonna come take you away!"

Serena said nothing. Sammy stared at her a moment, then stepped up and shook her. "Come on, sis, I know you're just playing. Come on, get up. You've made mom worry. Stupid." He shook her harder, then grabbed the sheet and pulled it off of her. Serena still didn't move.

Sammy stared at her a moment more. Then he grabbed her diary off the dresser. "Hey, sis, if you don't get up I'm gonna read this. Oo, here's a juicy passage. Who's this Darian guy, Serena?"

"No one," Serena muttered, almost inaudibly. "No one at all."

Sammy put the book down. He reached out, touched his sister's head, right behind her meatballs, stroking her hair. His face changed from its usually nasty, teasing smirk to one of pure worry. "Sis... ?"

When Serena didn't respond, he dropped his hand to his side. Then he sadly turned and walked out of the room. With one last look back at the teenage girl, lying forlorly on her bed, Luna followed.

"Mom!" Sammy ran up to his mother, wrapping an arm around her as he pressed close to her. "Something's wrong with Serena!"

"I know, dear. I called one of her friends. She said she'd be right over."

Luna took a deep breath. Hopefully it was Amy. They hadn't heard what she'd mumbled, about not wanting to live. This was frightening, more frightening than the fight two days ago, when Serena had been overcome by the droid Hypnotica, and only Tuxedo Mask had been able to save her. Ever since Darian had begun acting cold towards her, Serena had been growing weaker, and weaker. Was it all over, now?

The doorbell rang, and Luna ran over with the others, and Serena's mom answered the door. It was Amy, thank heavens. Luna leaped up into her arms, meowing at her. Serena's mom tried to chastize her, but Amy shrugged.

"She's as worried as you are, I'll bet," she said. "Is Serena still upstairs?"

Sammy nodded. "I couldn't get her to get up. She won't even roll over!"

Amy started up the stairs to the bedroom. As soon as they were out of earshot, Luna filled her in. "This is dreadful!" She exclaimed. "I've never seen Serena like this before. It's like all the life has gone out of her!"

Her voice dropped, even though she was, of course, keeping her voice low so Serena's family wouldn't hear her. "I swear, I heard her say, real low, so her mom didn't hear, that she didn't want to go on living!"

Amy nodded. "Serena's mother said the same thing. She told me that she saw a look on Serena's face, a look she saw only once before, when her sister tried to kill herself, when they were kids."

"Oh, Amy, this can't be! We can't lose her like this, we just CAN'T!"

"I know." Amy hugged the cat. "Just a guess, but I'd say she's fallen into a depression. She's always been such an emotional person. She seems so up, and active all the time, but when Darian treats her like he's been doing, or Raye rags on her about something, she can come down awfully fast."

"Let's just hope this is a temporary mood swing, and not a sign of something more serious..."

As they neared the door, Luna put up a paw. "One moment, Amy. Just before she woke up, while she was sleeping, Serena was having a dream. I could hear her talking in her sleep. I think she was having an erotic dream. She was moaning and calling out Darian's name."

Amy nodded. "And Amy," Luna continued. "When she woke up... I don't think anyone else noticed, but I can smell it. It's pretty clear, to me." She took a breath. "She woke up during her climax. And I'm pretty sure it was her first."

"Poor Serena..." Amy shook her head. "All this with Darian is tearing her apart. No wonder she's depressed..." She looked at Luna. "Luna... you should know... this kind of thing just MIGHT trigger a Manic-Depressive episode. If Serena WERE Manic-Depressive, that is..."

Luna looked down at the ground. "It would explain a few things."

"Let's not worry about that now. For now, we'll just assume this is an isolated incident. We'll deal with anything else that happens when it happens."

She opened the door and walked in. Serena still lay there on the bed, the sheet on the floor, just laying there in the sunlight. Amy walked over and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Luna tells me that you're not feeling up to school today. You want to talk about it?"

"Go away."

"No, I won't. I'll sit right here on this bed until you talk to me." Amy put a hand on Serena's shoulder. "You can't drive me away, and I won't go away. I'll never leave you, Serena."

"Except to go study in Europe," Serena muttered darkly.

Amy's breath caught in her throat. But then she leaned forward. "No. I'll never leave you. Even if I go to Europe. Even if I go to the Moon. I'll always be right here, anytime you need me."

Serena shuddered, and burst into tears again. Amy ran her hand along her back, realizing for the first time how much her almost leaving for the overseas schooling had hurt Serena. She had realized, at the end, that she wasn't ready to leave her friends, but it hadn't occured to her how fragile her friend's state was.

It really didn't occur to ANY of them how fragile their friend was. Even Amy, who knew better, still sometimes forgot how deep her emotions ran -- and how deep the scars could be that were left behind when Serena was hurt. She wore her heart on her sleeve, which made it all too easy for it to be flayed open by someone like Darian or Raye.

Darian. That jerk. She didn't understand why he was driving Serena away, but it was obvious that he was doing it on purpose. And she knew him well enough to know that he still loved Serena. But he was trying to get rid of her anyway. She'd meant to try and figure that out, but she never had the time. The mystery of Reeny had become more important to her and the other Sailor Scouts lately.

"Hey, Serena. You know we'll always be here for you. Me, and all the rest of the Sailor Scouts. Why, we'll probably be together for the rest of our lives." That was one major clue she'd caught. In the time that Reeny came from, the Sailor Scouts defended her and the Queen. That means that either they are still the Sailor Scouts, in the future, or four more Scouts have succeeded them. In any case, their future as a team was assured.

But one thing nagged at the back of her mind. Four Scouts. Not five. And Rubius had said that Sailor Moon was not in the future. Was that because she had given up hope, and died, here, in the 'past'?

No. She wouldn't let that happen.

Amy reached out and picked Serena up. She turned her over, setting her in a sitting position against the headboard. Serena just slumped over, and tried not to look at her. But Amy moved her head so that Serena would have to look at her.

Serena's face was a mask of dejection, her expression one of a person who'd given up all hope of happiness. Her body was damp and sweaty, and her blonde hair, little ringlets that hung down out of her meatballs, were matted and sticking to her face. The sheets were wet, too. Luna was right, she'd definately had a climax.

"You were having a dream, weren't you?" She tipped Serena's head up, so she had to look her in the eye. "... about Darian. Luna told me that she heard you talking in your sleep."

Serena turned a little pink around the cheeks. "There's nothing to be afraid of, Serena. It's perfectly natural to have those feelings. And one day, you and Darian will be together for real. And that will be nothing to be afraid of, too..."

Serena waved her hand. "No. No. I've been fooling myself. We'll never be together again. He doesn't love me any more..."

"Yes he does!" Amy grabbed her firmly by the shoulders. "He HAS to! No one could do as much for you as he does, and not care about you!"

Serena was still shaking her head. "Look. Did the dream frighten you? Is that what's wrong?" Amy moved her head again, to make eye contact. "Are you afraid that Darian is going to do to you what he did in the dream? Because if you are, it's okay! I know you don't know much about sex, but it's not as frightening..."

Serena looked up, startled, for the first time making eye contact. "What? No! No, Amy, that's not it at all!" She looked away, blushing again.

"Well, at least you're talking." She stroked Serena's hair. "When... when it first happened to me, it scared me to death. I didn't know what it meant. Then I... well, I did what I usually do, I read some books. So I understand, now, and I'm not so scared. I guess I just assumed it was the same for you."

Serena looked up at her, a bit flattered that she would share something so intimate with her. "I'm sorry, Amy. I guess I must have really worried you all, didn't I?"

"I still am worried," Amy said, but she ruffled her friend's hair. "So if you're not scared of sex, what is the problem?"

Serena sighed, looking away again. For a moment, Amy thought she was about to retreat back into herself again, but then she shook her head. "The dream was... wonderful. I've never felt so... so happy..." she was starting to sob. "In all my life. But then... to wake up... and... and..." She broke down, crying into her palms.

"I don't WANT anyone else. I just want Darian. I thought I had him. I thought it was over. I thought..." She started to cry again.

"I see... you dreamed that you were making up..."

Serena nodded. "I told him... something... he came back to me... I told him... he was trying to protect me, but I didn't want to be protected. I just wanted him to love me. I didn't care about anything else."

Amy put a finger to her lips. "You figured out what was wrong between you. And you got back together."

Serena sobbed. "But it was just a dream." She buried her face in her hands. "And we'll NEVER get back together! He HATES me! I just have to face that..."

Amy pulled her hands away. "Stop that. He doesn't hate you. If he hated you, you would be dead right now." She stared Serena in the eye. "For some reason, he is pretending that he doesn't love you, but he still becomes Tuxedo Mask, and he's still there for you when you're in trouble."

"Don't you see! That's what the dream was trying to tell me! I don't KNOW what's wrong between us! But if he REALLY loved me, he would TELL me! He would be trying to PROTECT me, instead of hurting me all the time!"

Amy's eyes widened. "Wait a minute. Isn't that what you said? You said that Darian was trying to protect you, but that you didn't want to be protected."

"Huh?" Serena looked startled, then thought about it for a moment. "Yeah... I did say that. I didn't want him to protect me, just to love me..."

"What was it you figured out?"

Serena put a hand to her forehead. "I don't remember."

"Think, Serena, this might be important. Your subconsious may have just solved the riddle for you."

"I... I don't remember!"

"All right, all right. You said he was trying to protect you. You wanted him to love you, even MAKE love to you. So, the reason he was avoiding you is... if he loved you, he would hurt you."

Serena put a hand to her mouth. "Something about... a dream... yes... he had a dream... that I would get hurt... in the future."

"Aha! *HE* had a dream."

"No... no, I'M the one that's been having a dream... about... Darian and I... getting married."

"Nothing frightening about that..." Amy remarked.

Serena smiled, the look on her face one of absolute bliss. "I've been having it for a couple of days now. Oh, it's so wonderful..." Her face fell. "But then it ends."

"And he's been having the same dream?"

Serena stared off into space, her eyes haunted, the expression on her face one of growing fear. "But... last night... it was different... it was... horrible. It was the wedding... like before... but then... something TERRIBLE happened to me..."

Amy was silent. Serena thought for a moment, her hand up to her mouth, before she spoke again. "That was the dream he was having. I went to him... I told him I knew about it... I didn't care..."

"Serena. What happens to you -- do you have any idea?"

Serena shook her head. "It's just... a feeling... I can see... a crystal spire. I think... I think I'm trapped inside." She suddenly shivered, wrapping her arms tightly around herself. Amy hugged her, drawing her close.

"Serena, I think we need to consider the possibility that this dream may be a prophesy. It's a warning -- that some time in the future, something terrible is going to happen to you."

Serena stared at her. Amy thought for a moment, then nodded to herself. "Darian is very precognant. We've seen that he has visions, especially of you -- in the past, in the future. He ALWAYS knows when you're in trouble. If YOU had this dream, it's pretty clear that HE did..."

Serena gasped. She put a hand to her mouth. "So... the reason Darian's been avoiding me... ?"

"The dream is clear. If you marry Darian, something bad will happen to you. Or, something bad will happen to you soon after you marry Darian. Either way, if Darian wanted to protect you from that fate, the easiest way would be to prevent the first part of the prophesy, the marriage, from coming true."

"But I don't CARE!" Serena exclaimed. She stood up, clenching her fist as she gazed out the window. "I'd gladly accept whatever happens to me, as long as I can be with Darian, even if for just one night!"

"If I could be with him... just for a week... just for a year... If I had just a year to live... I'd spend it with him. Maybe we could even have a baby together... before... the end."

Amy found herself chuckling at Serena's brazen courage, and her unmistakable desire. That dream had obviously awakened something in the young woman. It seemed like only yesterday she was a stumbling crybaby, and here she was talking of her dreams, of marrying Darian, and raising a family with him. She would probably have a daughter, just as her mother Queen Serenity had, a little girl just like...

"OH! MY! GOD!" Amy slapped herself on the forehead. "I can't BELIEVE I was so STUPID! Why didn't I SEE it?!!!"

"What?" Serena stared at her, astonished. Luna also seemed shocked by Amy's reaction. She sat up, looking from her to Serena and then back again.

It all fell into place. Everything made perfect sense now. The only thing Amy couldn't understand was why it had taken her so long to figure it out. "Serena... oh, I can't BELIEVE this! According to the dream that both you and Darian had, you will marry Darian, and then something bad will happen to you in the future. You even saw a crystal spire, right?"

Serena nodded. "And Reeny said that she came from the future," Amy continued, "to save her mother, who is in trouble in a city called Crystal Tokyo, IN THE FUTURE. What if the two events are related? What if, the woman in the crystal spire and the woman in Crystal Tokyo are one and the same person... and Reeny has come back in time to save YOU!"

"That would mean, Reeny is my..." Serena's eyes got wider, and wider, almost impossibly wide, as her voice trailed off. She put both hands to her mouth, doubling over. It almost looked like she was hyperventilating.

"... your daughter," finished Amy.

"That obnoxious little spore!" Serena countered. "No WAY!"

"Serena, she has your hairstyle, your looks, your personality..."

"She does NOT!"

"She does TOO! She ACTS brave, but inside she's a scared little girl, and an easily hurt one, at that. She bursts into tears at the slightest provocation, runs away when faced with something frightening, refuses to back down in an argument, and is absolutely loveable because of it."

Amy grinned. "... Just like her mother."

There was a moment of silence, then Serena shook her head, as if trying to force the idea away. "No. It can't be. She's an annoying little toad. I HATE having her arou..." Her voice trailed off.

"You don't really mean that, do you?" It wasn't really a question, Amy stated it, matter-of-factly, as she watched the expression on Serena's face. The young blonde stared off in to space, stunned, her own feelings hopelessly confused. But she remembered the other day, defending Reeny from Rubius, how much she had wanted to protect her -- as if she were fighting to save her own child.

"It can't be..." she muttered. "She hates me. And I've been so ROUGH on her." Everything she'd said, everything she'd done, it was all coming back to her, accusations from her own conscience, of how badly she'd treated Reeny.

"What kind of mother treats her child like that!" She protested, almost sobbing, almost screaming. But Amy smiled at her.

"One that sees too much of herself in her daughter." Amy got up and walked to Serena's side, wrapping her arms around her friend in a reassuring embrace. "You're not a grown woman with a five year old child. You're just barely more than a child yourself. And you didn't know who Reeny was."

Amy thought for a moment, then looked around. "Where IS Reeny, anyway?"

"She's at Mina's," Luna answered. "After the battle with Rubius, Serena thought that it might be best for Reeny if she went to stay with one of you girls for a while. Reeny sure seemed happy when she was able to stay with you, a few months ago..."

The little genius grinned. "Looks like you were already trying to come to terms with Reeny, Serena."

Serena blushed, and Amy continued. "As for Reeny, she doesn't know who YOU are, either. Her mother is a calm, patient adult, and you're someone who is, first of all, closer to her age, and second of all, not tied down with responsibilities. If you ARE the Queen of Crystal Tokyo in the future, you must not have a lot of time for your daughter..."

"That's awful," Serena muttered, looking crestfallen.

"Maybe, but you see, to Reeny, her mother's someone who loves her, and is always glad to see her. Probably WE raised her. Which means WE punished her when she was bad. She's not used to getting her MOTHER mad at her."

"Her mother..." Serena muttered the words, once again stunned. "I'm a mother... I have a daughter..."

Amy looked at Luna. "We need to tell the others. If I'm right, then the Silver Crystal is the only thing that can save Serena's future self. That's why Reeny's been after it all this time."

"Reeny. Serena. My daughter."

Amy nodded. "Serena. We need you, most of all. If your future self can't overcome this danger, then something must be wrong with the Silver Crystal in the future. Whatever it is just might be able to hurt YOUR crystal, as well. So we HAVE to be careful."

"And Darian, too," Luna put in. "He always seems to be there to comfort her when she's scared, and she certainly seems to like him. As well she should... if he's her father."

Serena looked down at the bed. "And I was jealous that the two of them were together so much."

"And why shouldn't you be?" Luna looked at her. "Do you think that your mother never gets jealous of the time her husband has to spend with you and Sammy?"

"I never thought of it that way..."

"We should tell Darian, too." Amy looked at Serena. "If he's been having this dream, as you say, and that's why he's been avoiding you, then we HAVE to tell him. If we can save your future self from this terrible fate that will befall you, then there is no reason for you to be apart."

Serena's face lit up. "Yes! We can be together!" But then her expression darkened. "What if he doesn't believe us?"

Amy looked thoughtful. "So far, this is just a theory. There's another possibility... that Reeny is your GRANDDAUGHTER, or some even later generation, and so her mother would not be you, but one of your descendants."

"I prefer to think that these events are related, though." Amy looked up at Serena again. "In any case, if you and Darian don't get together, then Reeny would never have been born. And then she would not have been able to go back in time and warn us of this coming threat in the future."

"I don't care what happens to me, as long as I can be with Darian." Serena said, seriously.

Amy nodded. "I know. For Reeny's sake, we must at least check this possibility out. If nothing else, since we know that the Nega Moon comes from the future, if we can figure out how to defeat them here, maybe we can stop what happens to Reeny's mother from happening."

"Heh." Serena grinned. "The Nega Moon came here to try and change the past. Maybe we can change the future."

"I know we can." Amy said. "After all, we're the ones who are going to BE in the future."

The author would like to thank you for your continued support. Your review has been posted.